Creatividad

Letter to Dr. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission concerning the Violations to my author’s rights by the European Union in the Dominican Republic

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Where is the credibility of the European Union, Centre for Gender Studies of the University Intec and Profamilia which says it protects women’ rights? However they are crushing me, crushing my rights for the only reason I am a woman.
They’ve used my logo WITHOUT LICENSE OR CONTRACT since 8 years ago and in 2014 they’ve PLAGIARIZED it for another project. I ask for my rights.
#JusticeForGrecia #EndVAW in all forms

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

August 4 , 2019

Subject: Violations to my author’s rights by the European Union in the Dominican Republic

Dear President-elect von der Leyen:

For your information, attached is my open letter to the European Commission, regarding the Violations to my author’s rights by the European Union and its partners in the Dominican Republic and the delaying tactics that their lawyers are using in the Dominican courts. Also you can read my open letter in the following blog:

Best regards,

Lic. Grecia Rosalma Reynoso Arias
Santo Domingo, D.N., Dominican Republic

Cc: <bjoern.seibert@ec.europa.eu>, <marilena.zammit@@ec.europa.eu>, <david.sassoli@europarl.europa.eu>

Letter to Mr. Jean-Claude Juncker, President European Commission concerning the Violations to my author’s rights by the European Union in the Dominican Republic

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

May 8 , 2019

Subject: Violations to my author’s rights by the European Union in the Dominican Republic

Dear President Juncker: 

In the Dominican Republic, the European Union has violated the Dominican Constitution, international human rights treaties, international treaties of the author’s rights, the BUDAPEST cybercrime treaty, the DR-CAFTA free trade agreement, the Dominican Author’s rights Law No.65-00, jurisprudences and legal doctrine about the author’s rights.

In 2011, I created the name and the EMPODÉRATE logo for the “Impulsando los Derechos sexuales y los Derechos reproductivos” (Promoting sexual rights and reproductive rights) project, which partners were the European Union, Asociación Dominicana Pro-Bienestar de la Familia (PROFAMILIA), Centro de Estudios de Género del Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC), Sociedad Dominicana de Obstetricia y Ginecología and Núcleo de Apoyo a la Mujer. The European Union donated 903,937 EUR for the project, according to press releases and a video. (https://www.intec.edu.do/prensa/notas-de-prensa/item/union-europea-financia-proyecto-a-favor-de-los-derechos-sexuales-y-reproductivos-en-rd, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ay2pNoufo68). I was contracted to design the EMPODÉRATE logo for specific advertising pieces, but these five institutions have reproduced, have distributed and have communicated to the public my EMPODÉRATE logo in other advertising pieces. I did not give them my consent to do that and I have not received any remuneration.

The European Union donated 903,937 EUR for the project, according to press releases and a video.

Secondly, since 2014 the European Union, PROFAMILIA and Centro de Estudios de Género de  INTEC –three of the five institutions involved in the first infringement mentioned above- have used all the distinctive elements of my artwork, the EMPODÉRATE logo, without my consent and remuneration, in another project: “Voces por el Avance de los Derechos de las Mujeres” (Voices for the Advancement of Women’s Rights, https://voces.intec.edu.do)” whose logos UNAMOS NUESTRAS VOCES and UNIENDO NUESTRAS VOCES violate my moral rights and my economic rights. (See Attachment No.1). 

Attachment No.1

In September 2018, my lawyers filed two lawsuits in the Dominican civil courts of laws, as it follows:

  1. Act No.398/18, dated July 26, 2018; Act No.508/18, dated Sep.27, 2018; Act No.665/2018, dated July 25, 2018: and Act No. 38/19, dated Jan.17, 2019. Intimation of Payment for Infringement of Author’s Rights and Demand for Reparation of Damages. Defendants: European Union, PROFAMILIA, Centro de Estudios de Género de INTEC, Sociedad Dominicana de Obstetricia y Ginecología and Núcleo de Apoyo a la Mujer. At Second Civil and Commercial Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the Distrito Nacional; Jugde Danilo Caraballo; Case 035-18-ECON-01008.
  2. Act No.399 dated July 26, 2018; and Act No.509/18, dated Sep.27, 2018. Intimation of Payment for Infringement of Moral Rights and Patrimonial Rights of the Author and Demand for Reparation of Damages. Defendants: European Union, PROFAMILIA and Centro de Estudios de Género de INTEC. At Fifth Chamber of the Civil and Commercial Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the Distrito Nacional; Judge Argelia Sención Santana; Case 038-2018-ECON-01023.

In November 2018, the Dominican Embassy in Brussels sent the letter No.EMB-BEL-CEO/1016/18 to the Legal Department of the European Commission about the lawsuits filed in the Dominican civil courts of laws (See Attachment No.2). However, the European Union seized litigator Jhon Manuel Frías after seven hearings, just on Thursday, May 2, 2019, at the hearing of Case 038-2018-ECON-01023, at the Fifth Chamber of the Civil and Commercial Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the Distrito Nacional.

Attachment No.2

The European Union’s litigator, Jhon Manuel Frías, requested along with the other defendants’ litigators that Case 035-18-ECON-01008 and Case 038-2018-ECON-01023 should be known at the Second Civil and Commercial Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the Distrito Nacional because they allegated that the lawsuits deals about the same object and the same defendants, which it is not the truth because both lawsuits deal about different violations and differents defendants, based on a preponderance evidence in the internet, too.

Judge Argelia Sención Santana said that throught a “very quick reading” of the introductory Act No.398 of the case 035-18-ECON-01008 she could notice that both lawsuits could be heard at the Second Civil and Commercial Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the Distrito Nacional. So, she granted the motion to the defendants’ litigators (European Union, PROFAMILIA and INTEC). Without analyzing it and without taking a prudential time to study the description of the events, the legal basis that differentiate both lawsuits and the evidences, at the date of the hearing Judge Sención Santana concluded that she would send File 038-2018-ECON-01023 to the Second Civil and Commercial Chamber of the Court of First Instance of the Distrito Nacional. On Thursday, May 2, 2019, it was scheduled that I would be give my testimony about the facts and the damages I have suffered due to the defendants’ actions, but Judge Sención Santana did not let me talk because the defendants’s litigators suggested the judge to cancel my hearing. 

At the trial, on May 2, 2019, Jugde Argelia Sención Santana did not let me express how the European Union and the other defendants have used my artwork and the ilegal use of it, without my consent and remuneration:

  • Since eight (8) years ago, the European Union, PROFAMILIA, Centro de Estudios de Género de INTEC, Sociedad Dominicana de Obstetricia y Ginecología and Núcleo de Apoyo a la Mujer have been reproducing, distributing and communicating to the public my artwork, the EMPODÉRATE logo, without my consent and remuneration, in Internet. THEY DO NOT HAVE MY LICENSE AGREEMENT neither for the “Impulsando los Derechos sexuales y los Derechos reproductivos (Promoting sexual rights and reproductive rights)” projectnor for other projects.
  • Since five (5) years ago, the European Union, PROFAMILIA and Centro de Estudios de Género de INTEC mutilated my artwork, the EMPODÉRATElogo, without my consent and remuneration for the project “Voces por el Avance de los Derechos de las Mujeres” (Voices for the Advancement of Women’s Rights) whose logos UNAMOS NUESTRAS VOCES and UNIENDO NUESTRAS VOCES violate my moral rights (the right of attribution and the right of integrity of my work) and my economic rights (the right of reproduction, the right of distribution, the right to communicating my work public and the right of transformation of the work). Since five (5) years ago, those illicit actions have damaged my honor and reputation.

The European Union promotes that it is an international organization that protects intellectual property and author’s rights, human rights and the empowerment of women worldwide. Nevertheless, that institution of international prestige is violating my Dignity as a Woman and my moral rights and patrimonial rights of author.

Hoping that the European Union acts to restore my rights as an author.

Best regards,

Lic. Grecia Rosalma Reynoso Arias
Santo Domingo, D.N., Dominican Republic

Cc: <antonio.tajani@europarl.europa.eu>, <margrethe-vestager-contact@ec.europa.eu>, <manfred.weber@europarl.europa.eu>, <tf50-contact@ec.europa.eu>, <cab-ansip-web@ec.europa.eu>, <elissavet.vozemberg@europarl.europa.eu>, <cab-king-contact@ec.europa.eu>, <vera-jourova-contact@ec.europa.eu>, <cab-gabriel-contact@ec.europa.eu>, <stijn.debaene@fieldfisher.com>, <hakim.haouideg@fieldfisher.com>, <sebastian@sebastian-kurz.at>, <observatory@euipo.europa.eu>, <vilija.blinkeviciute@europarl.europa.eu>, <marie-christine.boutonnet@europarl.europa.eu>, <koen.lenaerts@curia.europa.eu>, <christos.GIAKOUMOPOULOS@coe.int>, <guido.raimondi@echr.coe.int>, <commissioner@coe.int>, <press.office@consilium.europa.eu>, <julia.reda@europarl.europa.eu>

Letter to the European Parliament, the European Council and the European Commission concerning Infringements of copyright by the Delegation of the European Union to the Dominican Republic

Grecia Reynoso AriasLeave a comment

August 13, 2018

Antonio Tajani

President of the European Parliament

Rue Wiertz 60

1047 Brussels

Belgium

Mr. Donald Tusk

President of European Council

Rue de la Loi 175

1048 Brussels 

Mr. Jean-Claude Juncker

President of European Commission

Rue de la Loi 200

1049 Brussels

Subject: Infringement of copyright by the Delegation of the European Union to the Dominican Republic

Dear President Tajani, President Tusk and President Juncker:

The Delegation of the European Union to the Dominican Republic is involved in the infringement of copyright, in the cases of the projects “Impulsando los Derechos Sexuales y los Derechos Reproductivos” and “Voces por el Avance de los Derechos de las Mujeres”.  For the first one, the European Union donated 903,937 EUR to its Dominican partner Asociacion Dominicana Pro-Bienestar de la Familia, Inc., (PROFAMILIA).

In 2011, I designed the EMPODÉRATE Logo to identify the project “Impulsando el Ejercicio de los Derechos Sexuales y los Derechos Reproductivos”, which the Asociación Dominicana Pro-Bienestar de la Familia, INC. (PROFAMILIA), Centro de Estudios de Género de INTEC (CEG-INTEC), Núcleo de Apoyo a la Mujer (NAM) and  Sociedad  Dominicana de Obstetricia y Ginecología carried out together with the Delegation of the European Union to the Dominican Republic. These institutions reproduced, distributed and communicated to the public my artistic design without my authorization and payment, which violates my author’s rights, according to international author’s rights treaties, international commercial treaties and Dominican author’ rights laws.

On the other hand, since 2014 Asociación Dominicana Pro-Bienestar de la Familia, INC. (PROFAMILIA), Centro de Estudios de Genero de INTEC (CEG-INTEC) and Delegation of the European Union to the Dominican Republic are using the distinctive elements of my artistic design, the EMPODÉRATE logo, without my authorization and payment, in order to promote the project “Voces por el Avance de los Derechos de las Mujeres”. The typography and the freehand drawing are the distinctive elements of the EMPODÉRATE logo and, precisely, these two elements were taken without my authorization and payment to create UNAMOS NUESTRAS VOCES and UNIENDO NUESTRAS VOCES logos. The result of this illegal use is the plagiarism. When observing both superimposed images, you may watch the use of the same elements (typography and freehand drawing).

UNAMOS NUESTRAS VOCES Logo
UNIENDO NUESTRAS VOCES Logo
Superposition of my artwork, the EMPODERÁTE logo (2011), and the plagiarism (2014). When observing both superimposed images, you may watch the use of the same elements (typography and freehand drawing)

The UNAMOS NUESTRAS VOCES and UNIENDO NUESTRAS VOCES logos have been reproduced, distributed and communicated to the public for more than four years in several  physical and virtual media. Therefore, the magnitude of the plagiarism has had great benefits for the partners of this project, but the plagiarism has affected my moral and economic author’s rights.

The European Union, an international institution of such prestige, proclaims that promotes human rights and women empowerment, but my author’s rights are being violated.

At the same time, European citizens ignore how the Delegation of the European Union to the Dominican Republic is investing their money in projects that damage human rights.

In both cases, the demands will be introduced to civil Dominican tribunals in order to look for justice. 

Best regards,

Lic. Grecia Rosalma Reynoso Arias

Graphic Designer and Demander